Buried under a bunch of World Championships lined up over the next few weeks is one involving bridge. A regular at the team event featuring four categories nowadays, Indians have been unsuccessful in all expect for the Senior section, in which they won a silver and a bronze in 2022 and 2019.
They will try to come closer this time at the event which is important for India for another reason. The World Championships in the Moroccan capital of Marrakesh (August 20-September 2) will be followed by the Asian Games in Hangzhou in China (from September 23). Bridge made its first appearance at Asian Games in 2018, when Indians won a gold and two bronze medals. It’s a chance for the game people knew little about until a few years back to grow further.
Barring the Senior section, which is not part of the Asian Games, competitions in China will be held in Open, Mixed and Women’s categories. There are three pairs in each. The World Championships, where 24 teams in every section play an all-play-all league before the top eight make it to the quarterfinals, is a chance for the contingents in these three sections to sharpen their game before the Asian Games.
RevSportz caught up with Joyjit Sensarma, Anal Shah and Vinay Desai, coaches of India’s Open, Women’s and Mixed teams, respectively, on India’s chances in Morocco and China. The following are excerpts:
India’s medal record at the Worlds isn’t great. Do things look different this time?
Joyjit: There has been a lot of online and off-line work. We played online matches against Italy, Israel and Ireland (some of the players of these teams and the USA are trained by Joyjit). It also comes down to how we handle the 13 days physically and mentally. Our first target is the last eight.
One reason India did not do well in the past was most of the teams were sponsored. And the sponsor usually turned out to be the weak link. Also, we never had a coach. Now, there is a selection trial and only the best get picked. Appointing coaches for all teams is a welcome development.
Anal: Our medal chances are negligible. This team has usually finished last or second last. It’s not their fault. We don’t lack intelligence. But in the US and Europe, they train under a coach for 4-8 hours a day. Top players make a living out of bridge in those countries.
Things are changing in India, but we are still to make enough efforts on preparation and funding the game in a big way. We have to compete against the best. Having said that, our ladies won gold at the zonal event in Lahore and did better than ever at the Asia-Pacific. They are enriched by these experiences, due to which we should do better. All are working hard.
Vinay: India have done badly in this section since its inception in 2019. In the last three editions, we finished 18th. We are more settled and experienced as a team this time. The same team that played in the previous edition in Italy in 2022 (not held in 2021 due to Covid-19) is travelling to Morocco. We may not qualify for the last eight, but ninth or 10th will be reasonable, considering where we are at the moment.
Looking ahead to the Asian Games, how important are the Worlds this year?
Joyjit: The experience should be helpful. We finished fourth in the Asia-Pacific meet. Of the top four, New Zealand won’t be there at the Asian Games. We’ll be in medal contention if we repeat that performance. Historically, China is the most formidable side of this region. Given the way we have prepared, I’d say this team has a reasonable shot at the top two in the Open category. Once there, we’ll focus on gold.
Anal: At the Asian Games the women’s team’s medal chances would be 30%. That’s because the Worlds are of a completely different level for our team, where a medal is difficult. In Asia our chances are better. In Asia-Pacific we are 6th-7th out of 12 teams. The aim is to do better than that.
Vinay: At the Worlds, we can gauge ourselves vis-a-vis the top teams. Apart from China, Chinese Taipei, Singapore, who will be in Morocco, Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand and Korea will be our main rivals at the Asian Games. We were seventh at the Asia-Pacific. One of our top pairs of Kiran Nadar and B Satyanarayana was not there and will be back. We have a 75-80% chance of a podium finish in China.
After the success at the 2018 Asian Games, what kind of changes has Indian bridge witnessed?
Joyjit: Other than the selection of best players and appointment of coaches, there is more exposure these days. Our players have the experience of playing abroad and playing against overseas players online. Members of the pairs have experience of playing together for a long time. We also have in place a structured training programme. Ideally, this should have happened earlier.
Anal: After bridge became a medal sport at the Asian Games, the government started funding trips to major international events. Domestic tournaments and prize money have increased. More people including sponsors are showing interest. But we need a cultural change to make a mark at the top level. In Europe, bridge is taught in schools. We need infrastructure at least from the college level.
Vinay: Indian bridge has become more professional after 2018. There are monetary incentives for players and more tournaments. More people are devoting their time to bridge. There are many who work on bridge for about 120 days a year. Things are going upwards. The average standard has improved considerably, although we have not been able to achieve a breakthrough at the world level.
Teams for World Bridge Championships and Asian Games
Open: Jaggy Shivdasani, Sandeep Thakral, Rajeshwar Tiwari, Sumit Mukherjee, Raju Tolani, Ajay Khare.
Mixed: Kiran Nadar, B Satyanarayana, Himani Khandelwal, Rajeev Khandelwal, Marianne Karmarkar, Sandeep Karmarkar.
Women’s: Asha Sharma, Puja Batra, Alka Kshirsagar, Bharti Dey, Kalpana Gurjar, Vidya Patel.
Senior (only for World Championships): Hemant Jalan, Samir Basak, Pranab Bardhan, Badal Das, Sukamal Das, Subrata Saha.
Chef de Mission: Ranjan Bhattacharya.
Also Read: Coach Comfort for Indian Bridge Teams